ART FOR HEALING
Lionel Smit x The Children’s Hospital Trust
Thank you for your interest in our collaboration, Art for Healing, a special project between South African artist Lionel Smit and The Children’s Hospital Trust. Through this initiative, 35% of the proceeds will go towards upgrading the Short Stay Ward at the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital.
6 - 17 October 2025
Explore the collection below — each artwork opens to reveal close-ups and a video.
Short Stay Ward
The Short Stay Ward is the busiest in the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital. It was designed as an observation space where children presenting at the emergency centre could await testing or receive acute treatment. Due to limited capacity, it also handles overflow from other medical wards. The Short Stay Ward also treats seasonal diarrhoea and pneumonia – leading causes of death in young children.
The Short Stay Ward is no longer sufficient for the size and diversity of its patient load. Rows of cots, alternating with chairs for caregivers, line each wall. Parents are forced to eat, sleep, and breastfeed on a chair beside their child’s bed. Overcrowding and poor ventilation result in the uncontrolled spread of infectious diseases. The layout makes it impossible to monitor children from the nurses’ station. Nurses and clinicians resort to code words to discuss sensitive patient information. Staff, caregivers, and patients – sometimes 100 people – share a single toilet. There is no privacy or semblance of dignity.
Art for Healing is a unique opportunity to invest in a timeless artwork while investing in high-quality, dignified healthcare for children from across the Western Cape and beyond.
PAINTINGS
SCULPTURES
WORK ON PAPER
How It Works
The collection will remain accessible from 6 October until 17 October 2025 at 4 pm.
Sales will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis. If you would like to secure a work, please notify us immediately to place a reserve.
Reserves can be held for a maximum of 24 hours only.
Works can also be viewed in person at Lionel Smit Studio, Monday to Friday from 9 am to 4 pm.
Lionel Smit Studio will also be open on Saturday, 11 October, from 10 am to 12 pm.
Lionel Smit Studio will donate 35% of the net proceeds from sales to the Children’s Hospital Trust.
For South African buyers, delivery will be arranged with our trusted art-handling partners. For international collectors, we will provide shipping quotes and coordinate the logistics to ensure safe delivery worldwide.
ABOUT THE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL TRUST
The Children’s Hospital Trust believes every child should have access to quality healthcare close to home — to feel safe, comforted, and supported by skilled professionals during times of illness and trauma. Founded in 1994, the Trust is an independent non-profit organisation that raises funds to support paediatric healthcare in South Africa. 100% of donations go directly to priority healthcare needs, with not a cent spent on administration costs.
Working with the Western Cape Department of Health, the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, and UCT’s Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, the Trust has already invested over R1 billion in improving child health infrastructure, training specialists, and funding lifesaving projects.
For inquiries at The Children’s Hospital Trust:
Zodidi Dano
zodidi.dano@chtrust.org.za
+27 (0)21 686 7860
1 Milner Service Road, Nurses Home, Rondebosch, 7700
ABOUT LIONEL SMIT
Lionel Smit is one of South Africa’s most prolific and exalted artists. His artistic diversity is pursued through a variety of mediums and he is best known for his contemporary portraiture. His art is defined by a deeply rooted symbiotic relationship between sculpture and painting. Today, each of Lionel Smit’s works offers us an entry point into the variety and richness that lies beneath every face we encounter in life, whether applied in bronze or paint. The blending of techniques across genres is a display of Smit’s work in multiple media, all bearing a visible and tangible overlap.
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For inquiries at Lionel Smit Studio:
Monique Bredell
monique@lionelsmit.co.za
+27 (0) 21 205 6867
2 Gardner Williams Avenue, Paardevlei, Somerset West, 7130
Opening hours:
Mon – Fri, 9 AM – 4 PM